NEWS ITEMS

The International Astronomical Search Collaboration (IASC) provides images and software for schools to participate in a large asteroid-finding research project.
Lists of their recent asteroid discoveries are at http://iasc.hsutx.edu/index_files/Page786.htm.
Their 2008 near Earth asteroid discoveries are at http://iasc.hsutx.edu/Discoveries.

2010 Feb 25. Cape student makes mark on universe. By ROBERT GOLD. Excerpt: Kelsie Krafton, a senior at Sturgis Charter Public School in Hyannis, hopes to add her initials to the names of the two asteroids she has discovered...
...Two years ago, Kelsie Krafton took her first physics class. Now, she's discovering asteroids and soaring toward a career in astrophysics.
As a then-sophomore at Sturgis Charter Public School in Hyannis, Kelsie breezed through her first physics class. She was bored by how easy it seemed. But one day, she flipped on a television show about astrophysics and was hooked.
"It kind of added a whole new dimension to the subject," she said of viewing astrophysics as filled with adventure and exploration. Kelsie decided she wanted to pursue a career in the field.
This week, the 17-year-old Falmouth resident received official word that she's discovered two asteroids through a global space exploration project. The International Astronomical Search Collaboration, a network of research institutes and science laboratories, confirmed that the high school senior had found two new asteroids.
The program's founder, Dr. Patrick Miller of Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas, e-mailed Kelsie's Sturgis math teacher, Randy Carspecken, with the news.
Kelsie, who submitted her asteroid findings on Valentine's Day, found out about the accomplishment when she checked her laptop Tuesday night. She ran around her family home in celebration.
"This is something (she'll) never forget," Carspecken said of the discovery....

2010 Feb 9. ARO confirms WISE Space Telescope Comet Discovery. Robert Holmes used the first ground based telescope, the ARO 0.81-m to confirm the first WISE space telescope comet discovery now known as COMET P/2010 B2 (WISE). Many large observatories attempted to confirm this discovery more than 7 days earlier including the Faulkes 2.0m telescope in Hawaii as well as the 0.81m telescope at ARO without success. However due to poor weather, ARO had to wait 7 more days to make their second attempt at the WISE discovery on 2010 02 07. Holmes and Harlan Devore located the target in ARO images at nearly the same time separated by about 800 miles. Two other telescopes also confirmed the WISE comet discovery including the 3.6-m telescope at Mauna Kea operated by A. Draginda and D.J. Tholen and the Spacewatch 1.8-m telescope at Kitt Peak operated by J.V. Scotti. For an animation of this discovery confirmation and the MPEC, see http://killerasteroidproject.org/wise_obs_page.htm

HOU is resource of the Digital Library for Earth Science Education (DLESE).   You may submit a review of HOU resources for inclusion in the DLESE Reviewed Collection at DLESE. Thank you for taking the time.

NOTEWORTHY HOU IMAGES

Auto-guided image taken with the New Mexico Tzec Maun E180 refracting telescope Saturday morning, October 24. It uses a SBIG one-shot color camera (ST-2000). Single exposure time was 10 minutes. Image taken by Glenn Reagan.

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